Dispensing container with pivoting cover



June 2, 1970 N. s. WATERMAN DISPENSINQ CONTAINER WITH PIVOTING COVER 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 10. 1968 INVENTOR ,S. Wzoei'm are i 5. ATTORNEYS 3Q June 2, 1910 N. s. WATERMAN DISPENSING CONTAINER WITH PIVOTING COVER 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed June 10, 1968 United States Patent O US. Cl. 222-189 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A dispensing container has an opening provided with a cover which pivots about a central axis between open and closed positions. The cover may be snapped into either its open or closed positions by slight pressure from an index finger of one hand in which the container is held. Manipulation of the cover is effected upon the rear flap, whereby the hand need never touch the container opening through which the contents are dispensed. A grooved skirt may depend from the cover which tightly engages an upstanding rim about the opening to effect a sift-free sealed closure for particulate materials, while the resilient rear flap thereon releasably locks the cover in closed position. Pivotal movement of the cover is limited in extent on opening by manual movement of a depending leg on the resilient flap of the cover into a recess in the container top. A plurality of tooth-like projections extend from the cover into the opening and are only partially withdrawn when the cover is opened to present a sievelike passage for particulate materials, for evenly dispensing the container contents. The container top and cover gray be made separately for attachment to a container ody.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The dispensing of material from a container without spillage and waste, and particularly the dispensing particulate material to a selected area of a fiat surface has been difiicult to achieve with the shaker type dispensing containers of the prior art. The shaker type container dispenses material in a chance manner which makes control of the extent or uniformity of coverage of a surface extremely difiicult. Many of the problems of the prior art have been overcome by the dispenser disclosed and claimed in my prior application Ser. No. 556,002 filed June 8, 1966, entitled Dispensing Container for Spreading Particulate Material, now Pat. No. 3,383,019, issued May 14, 1968. In that structure, however, the users fingers must lift the cover at the container opening, thereby creating the possibility of contamination of the contents through dirty fingers, or of contamination of the users fingers by contact with the containers material contents.

A problem arises also in dispensing very fine particulate materials such as finely divided powders. These materials tend to sift out of the closure of the dispensers in which they are marketed when the dispensers are moved or roughly handled as during transportation, and this results in an unacceptable loss of particulate material. Further, the sifting material tends to coat the surfaces of the dispensing containers making them commercially unattractive.

The dispensing container of the present invention is an improvement on the container of my above-identified patent, and overcomes the problems of the prior art dispensers including the sifting problem resulting from the use of finely divided materials. The contamination problem is overcome by making the cover operable from the rear, on the opposite side of the container from the dispensing opening. Also, the container of the present invention is adapted for one-hand operation whereby the same hand that holds the container can also manipulate the cover into either its open or closed positions. The principal structural features of the present invention are equally useful in a pivotal closure for dispensing liquids from a container.

Accordingly, representative objects of the present invention are to provide a container for one-hand controlled dispensing of either finely divided particulate materials or liquids, which has means for eliminating unwanted sifting or leakage during shipment, and which is inexpensive to manufacture, commercially attractive and effective in use. Another object is to assure cleanliness by eliminating any need for bodily contact at or near the container opening through which the containers contents are dispensed.

Other objects of the invention will in part be obvious and will in part appear hereinafter.

The invention accordingly comprises the features of construction, combinations of elements, and arrangement of parts which will be exemplified in the constructions hereinafter set forth, and the scope of the invention will be indicated in the claims.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a dispensing container for particulate materials and/or liquids, and more particularly to a dispensing container having a pivotal cover which when closed securely seals the dispenser opening against the sifting or leakage of material therethrough.

Referring to FIG. 1, the dispenser of the invention comprises a hollow container body 10 of generally rectangular shape and open at the bottom end 12 to permit filling with particulate material; bottom end 12 is sealed after filling with a snap-fitting bottom end cap 14. Particulate material is dispensed from the top end 16 of container 10 which, for this purpose, is provided with an elongated opening 18 adjacent the top front corner 20 thereof.

Opening 18 is closed and sealed against the sifting of particulate material by a cover 22 which is pivotally mounted over opening 18 on supports 24a and 24b which project from top end 16. Cover 22 thus may pivot from a closed position in which a tight seal is effected around opening 18, to an open position. This pivoting movement of cover 22 is limited in extent in a manner more fully described below by the interaction of a resilient flap 26 on cover 22 with a recess 28 provided on top surface 16 of container 10. The cover 22 is opened by applying finger pressure to the resilient rear flap 26, as shown in FIG. 2, and it is closed by applying finger pressure tothe forward portion 27. A plurality of spaced, tooth-like projections 30 extend from cover 22 into opening 18, and are only partially withdrawn when cover 22 is pivoted into an open position, due to the limited movement there of. The partially withdrawn teeth 30 thus present a sievelike passage (see FIG. 3) through which particulate material can be effectively and evenly dispensed to a surface.

The dispensing container of the invention is most advantageously used for spreading particulate material on a flat surface such as a sanitary napkin or surgical dressing. This is accomplished by tilting the container so that top front corner 20 rests on or is held just above the surface to be coated, the index finger is pressed against the rear cover flap to pivot the cover into its open position, and a container side is then tapped by the users middle or third finger to expel particulate material through the sieve-like passage formed by teeth 30 as the container is moved over the surface.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS For a fuller understanding of the nature and objects of the invention, reference should be had to the following 3 description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an exploded, front perspective view of the dispensing container of the invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged side sectional view of the assembled dispensing container (broken horizontally to permit greater enlargement) taken along line 22 of FIG. 1 and showing the cover in open (dotted lines) and closed (solid lines) positions;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged partial front elevational view showing the cover in an open position;

FIG. 4 is a partial sectional view taken along line 44 of FIG. 2, showing the pivotal supports for the movable cover.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to FIG. 1, container body is a hollow, generally rectangular box formed of a readily molded flexible plastic material such as polypropylene. The sides 32 and 34 of container 10 may be made concave in shape as shown to facilitate the handling of the dispenser in use.

Top surface 16 of container 10 is recessed below the side shoulders 36 and 38 to provide room for the pivoting cover 22, and an elongated opening 18 communicating with the interior of container body 10 is provided on top surface 16 adjacent the top front corner thereof. Opening 18 is surrounded by an upstanding rim 40 Which forms a sift-free seal in conjunction with cover 22 in a manner more fully described below. A pair of supports 24a, 24b for the pivotal mounting of cover 22 project from top surface 16 and each includes a keyhole slot 42a, 42b for insertion of the cover pivots. An elongated recess 28 runs along the length of top surface 16 adjacent the rear of container body 10. The back of recess 28 is defined by an upstanding boss 44 which has a beveled surface 46 sloping into recess 28 as shown in FIG. 2.

Cover 22 is preferably molded as a unitary member from the same material from which container body 10 is formed. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, cover 22 is a generally U-shaped member having a pair of L-shaped pivot arms 48a, 481) depending from the inner surface 50 thereof. Pivot arms 48a and 48b are respectively rotatably secured in keyhole slots 42a and 42b to pivotally support cover 22 over opening 18. Cover 22 may thus pivot between the open (dotted lines) and closed positions shown in FIG. 2.

The front end of cover 22 comprises dependent skirt portions 52 and 53 which define between them a groove 54 shaped to conform to and frictionally mate with the upstanding rim 40 surrounding opening 18. Groove 54 and surrounding, overhanging skirt portions 52 and 53 thus form with rim 40 a sift-free seal when cover 22 is closed as shown by solid lines in FIG. 2.

A plurality of spaced, tooth-like projections 30 extend from behind the front end of skirt 53 and into opening 18 between a plurality of spacers 56 projecting inwardly from the inner surface 58 of container body 10 (FIGS. 2 and 3). Spacers 56 are preferably spaced apart a distance which permits the teeth 30 to frictionally slide therebetween thus completing the sift-free seal when cover 22 is closed. Also preferably, the bottom front edges 60 of teeth 30 are beveled (FIG. 1) to facilitate their movement in and out of opening 18.

The back end of cover 22 comprises a resilient flap 26 having a dependent leg 62 as shown in FIG. 2. When cover 22 is closed (solid lines) the bottom end 62a of leg 62 abuts or very nearly abuts the top surface 44a of boss 44 to prevent cover 22 from accidentally opening during shipment or storage. Also, the pivoting movement of cover 22 upon opening is limited in extent by the interaction of leg 62 with the bottom of recess 28 on the container body top so that teeth 30 are not completely withdrawn from opening 18 when cover 22 is opened. There is thus provided the sieve-like passage shown in FIG. 3 through which particulate material contained within the dispenser may be readily and evenly distributed on a fiat surface. More specifically, the pressure of the users thum'b applied to flap 26 causes leg 62 to flex inwardly and clear top surface 44a of boss 44. Then, upon a slight pivoting movement of cover 22, leg 62 contacts the beveled surface 46 of boss 44 which guides leg 62 downwardly into contact with the bottom of recess 28 (dotted line FIG. 2) to limit the pivotal movement of cover 22. It will be understood that the depth of recess 28 should be correlated with the length of teeth 30 so that the teeth are not fully withdrawn from opening 18 when cover 22 is pivoted to an open position.

To close cover 22, finger pressure is applied above skirt portions 52 and 53, anywhere in the vicinity of forward area 27 in FIG. 2; this causes cover 22 to pivot downwardly and forces groove 54 over and into tight frictional engagement with the upstanding rim 40 around opening 18 to effect the sift-free seal provided by the dispenser of the invention.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the dispenser is preferably formed with an open bottom end to provide means for filling it with particulate material. A snap-fitting bottom end cap 14 is provided to seal the open bottom end 12. The periphery 64 of cap 14 is shaped to surround and frictionally engage a head 66 provided on bottom end 12 for a tight, sealed closure.

Although bottom end 12 of container body 10 has been shown open in a preferred embodiment, it will be understood that the container may be formed with a closed bottom end, and that the top of the container body may be made removable in the form of a top end cap to provide means for filling the dispenser as disclosed in my co-pending application Ser. No. 556,002. For this modified structure, the open top end of container body 10' will be provided with a bead similar to bead 66, and the top end cap which will contain opening 18, supports 24 and recess 28 will be formed with a periphery similar to pcriphery 64 of the bottom end cap 14 discussed above. In either embodiment the container and pivotal cover are formed of only three pieces of molded plastic.

It will also be understood that the upper portion of the dispensing container of the invention may be made in the form of a top end cap with attached pivoting cover, and marketed as a separate unit for use on container bodies made or provided by different manufacturers, as for example, on metal can containers.

It will thus be seen that the objects set forth above, among those made apparent from the preceding description, are efficiently attained and, since certain changes may be made in the above constructions without departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A sanitary, single handed, dispensing container com prising, in combination:

(A) a hollow container body having a top front corner,

(B) means on said container body forming at least one opening adjacent said top front corner and communicating with the interior thereof,

(1) said opening including first sealing means,

(C) a cover pivotally supported over said opening,

(1) said cover being manually pivotal away from said opening to a position wherein said opening is exposed, and toward said opening to a position wherein said opening is covered,

(2) a plurality of spaced tooth-like projections on said cover and extending into said opening,

(3) limit means limiting the extent of pivotal movement of said cover away from said opening so that said projections are only partially withdrawn from said opening when said cover is opened to form a sieve-like passage for spreading particulate material on a surface, and

(4) second sealing means on said cover engaging with said first sealing means when said cover is closed to seal said opening against the leakage of material therethrough.

2. A dispensing container as defined in claim 1 wherein said first sealing means comprises an upstanding rim surrounding said opening, and said second sealing means comprises a grooved skirt projecting from said cover in alignment with said rim, the groove in said skirt being shaped to surround and frictionally engage said rim on both sides thereof when said cover is closed to seal said opening.

3. A dispensing container as defined in claim 1 wherein said limit means comprises a recess in said container body, and a resilient flap on said cover to the side of the pivot thereof opposite said projections, said flap having a depending leg extended adjacent to said recess, and being manually deformable to steer said leg into said recess to permit limited pivotal movement of said cover.

4. A single handed, rear operating dispensing top for a container comprising, in combination:

(A) means forming at least one opening communicating with the interior of said container,

(B) a cover pivotally supported over said opening,

(1) said cover being manually pivotal by application of finger pressure to the rear side thereof into an open position, and by finger pressure to a forward portion thereof removed from the dispensing area into a closed position, and

(C) limit means limiting the extent of pivotal movement of said cover, said limit means comprising (1) a recess adjacent said opening, and (2) a resilient flap on said cover spaced from the pivot thereof,

(a) said fiap having a depending leg extended adjacent to said recess, and being manually deformable to steer said leg into said recess to permit limited pivotal movement of said cover.

5. A dispensing top as defined in claim 4 and further including means forming a sieve-like passage adjacent said opening through which materials from the interior of said container may be dispensed when said cover is open.

6. A dispensing top as defined in claim 4 and further including sealing means on said cover and about said opening engaging to seal said opening when said cover is closed.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,033,688 7/1912 Fuchs 222-556 X 1,033,689 7/1912 Fuchs 222556 X 2,361,958 11/1944 Nyden 222--556 2,878,976 3/1959 Frederick 222556 X 3,239,112 3/1966 Porcelli 222-189 X 3,254,812 6/1966 Abbott 222556 X FOREIGN PATENTS 785,099 5/ 1968 Canada.

ROBERT B. REEVES, Primary Examiner H. S. LANE, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.. R. 222556 

